Yesterday was a very bad day. And it had very little to do with it being overcast, cold and wet. (Although that didn’t help.) It had to do with several phone calls that resulted in having to bring home my oldest son after an alarming conversation he’d had with the school social worker, followed by another 20-minute phone call from another teacher reporting a bullying incident she witnessed … [Read more...]
Audacious Prayer
There are many tools in the box of the special needs parent: humor in a crisis to help dry tears (not my forte), how-to books and hopeful stories to counter “what-if” fears, coffee to keep going after sleepless nights, and Cadbury’s chocolate for pretty much everything else. And prayer. Lots and lots of prayer. Until recently, I thought I knew how to pray. For example, I often use the Lord’s … [Read more...]
Out on a Limb
Each morning on my drive home from taking my teens to school, I catch myself looking up as I round the first bend in the road to catch a glimpse of something I think perhaps God has placed there just for me. (Or maybe for any driver blessed with ADHD and a tendency to look everywhere but the road.) I look for a little sign of hope that makes me smile every time I see it: a bird nest, held in the … [Read more...]
Peace Be With You
It’s three days before Christmas and I am at peace. There is no tree decorated in my living room. Gifts will be few and simple as a result of a tough financial year. There are no stockings hung by the chimney with care (an annual safety hazard I somehow justify year after year). And I haven’t even begun to think about what to fix for our Christmas dinner. I’m thinking “meat” might be one item on … [Read more...]
Wait for it….wait for it…
“Have you heard of ‘reservation time’?” our counselor asked. I shot my husband a blank look. I had no idea what he was talking about. “The Navejo have a custom,” he explained, leaning forward in his chair. “Families often live far apart without telephones, so rather than show up unannounced on a neighbor’s doorstep, they drive their cars within hearing distance of their neighbor‘s property. They … [Read more...]
For Richer or for Poorer
My husband and I often joke about robbing a bank. Or winning the lottery. Or coming into an inheritance. We’ve been joking for years because almost from the day our children were born, we have been in debt, despite many, many plans and schemes and dreams to bob our financial heads above water. You name it, we’ve been billed for it: therapies tried and true and sometimes new, doctor’s bills, … [Read more...]